The present invention relates to a recording/reproducing apparatus, and particularly to a magnetic tape recording/reproducing apparatus of the helical scanning type.
A recording/reproducing apparatus of the same general type to which the invention pertains is usually a VTR (Video Tape Recorder). In a VTR, it is possible to perform so-called "connection" recording operations such as insertion, editing, etc. (Connection recording is also known as smooth cut over recording.) These operations start from a recording mode, go to a recording pause mode, and return to the recording mode. In the conventional apparatus, the magnetic tape is rewound to some extent in response to a recording pause command, and when the operation is again shifted to the recording mode, the operation is started after a capstan servo is actuated while a CTL (control tracking) signal is being reproduced. (Such a CTL System is described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,358,797, for example.)
With this method, there are unavoidable problems, including the facts that a time loss occurs because the tape is rewound and the capstan servo is actuated, and shifting occurs at editing points.
On the other hand, recently there has been proposed a so-called 8 mm VTR employing 8 mm tape. In such an 8 mm VTR, rather than a CTL system, a so-called four-frequency pilot tracking system is employed. When connection recording is performed with this four-frequency pilot tracking system, it is necessary to cause the operation to shift to the recording mode after the tracking servo is actuated while the signal system is still in the reproducing mode. Accordingly, there is a disadvantage that there occurs a time loss upon the changeover of the signal system until a stable state is reached. (Such a four-frequency pilot tracking system is described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,297,733, for example.)
The same problems as those described above occur not only in the transient time from the recording pause mode to the recording mode, but also when the operation shifts from the still reproducing mode or the slow reproducing mode to the recording mode.